Whether you use natural gas or electricity as your energy source, making small changes can make a big difference when it comes to saving energy.
Here's a typical breakdown for your energy usage.
*Information obtained from EnergyStar.
Heating and Cooling
Water Heat
Your Thermostat
Landscaping
Pools and Spas
Heating and Cooling
- Keep heating and air conditioning system filters clean. When the filters are dirty or clogged, these systems must work harder, requiring more energy.
- For gas furnaces, make sure there is a good supply of outside air available so that the gas burns efficiently and safely.
- Inspect heating and cooling equipment annually, or as recommended by the manufacturer. If you have a forced air furnace, check your filters and replace them as needed. Generally, they should be changed about once every month or two, especially during periods of high usage.
- Have a professional check and clean your equipment once a year. If the unit is more than 15 years old, you should consider replacing it with one of the newer, energy-efficient units. This would go far to reduce your energy consumption, especially if the existing equipment is in poor condition.
- Check your ductwork for dirt streaks, especially near seams. These indicate air leaks, and they should be sealed with duct mastic. Insulate any ducts or pipes that travel through unheated spaces. An insulation R-Value of 6 is the recommended minimum.
- Have your heating system checked periodically by a licensed professional.
- Don't heat or cool unused space in your home. Close supply registers in unused rooms but do not close more than 20% of them. This might interfere with the operation of your central heating and cooling system. Do not block any return air vents or grills.
- Install insulating gaskets in electrical outlets or switches on outside walls. Kits are available at hardware and home improvement stores. Generally, you can do five receptacles and seven switches for under $5.
- Place aluminum foil reflectors behind radiators to reflect heat back into the room.
- Windows can be one of your home's most attractive features, but also account for 10% to 25% of your heating bill. Single-pane windows are the most inefficient, but it is possible to increase their efficiency. You can install storm windows to reduce air leaks and reduce heat loss by 25% – 50%. Storm windows should have weather stripping at all moveable joints and be made of strong durable materials.
- Repair and weatherize your current storm windows, if necessary.
- Look for dirty spots around your window. These often indicate a hole where air leaks into your house.
- Install tight-fitting, insulating window shades on windows that feel drafty after weatherizing.
- In the winter, close your curtains and shades at night and open them during the day to let the sun warm the room.
- Low-cost options for improving windows are caulking, weather stripping, retrofit window films and window treatments.
- Moveable insulation, such as insulating shades, shutters, and drapes can be used on the inside of windows to reduce heat loss in the winter and reduce heat gain in the summer. Shading devices such as awnings, exterior shutters, or screens can be used to reduce unwanted heat gain in the summer. In some cases, these window treatments are more cost-effective than energy efficient window replacements and should be considered first.
- Tinted glass and tinted window films have long been used in commercial buildings to reduce heat gain through windows. Improved, lightly tinted windows are becoming more common for homeowners. These new glazings reduce the solar heat gain without reducing too much visibility.
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Water Heat
- If you have a hot water or steam system, bleed the radiator to remove air that can reduce the radiator's efficiency. This can be done with a simple radiator key (available at your local hardware store).
- Reduce your water-heating bill by 10% by lowering the water heater temperature from 140º Fahrenheit to 120º Fahrenheit. Keep the temperature at 140º Fahrenheit if you use a dishwasher without a temperature booster.
- Once a year, drain a bucketful of water out of the bottom of the water heater tank. This gets rid of sediment, which can waste energy by "blocking" the water in the tank from the heating element.
- Insulate your hot water supply pipes to reduce heat loss. Hardware stores sell pipe insulation kits.
- Clean your thermostat yearly to keep it accurate. Just remove its cover and blow away accumulated dust.
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Your Thermostat
- Set your thermostat at 78 degrees in the summer and 68 degrees in the winter to better manage your energy costs. For each degree below 78 degrees for cooling or above 68 degrees for heating, your costs increase by 5 to 10 percent .
- To more closely monitor your thermostat, place an inexpensive thermometer next to it. Use the thermometer to gauge the accuracy of your thermostat.
- Replace your old thermostat with one of the newer clock models that can be set to automatically lower the temperature at bedtime and raise it in the morning. Some can be programmed to raise the setting several times a day.
- Make sure your thermostat is located on an interior wall. Keep sources of heat, like lamps, stereos and televisions, away from the thermostat. They will interfere with its ability to measure the room temperature accurately.
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Landscaping
- Landscaping can help block and absorb the sun's energy by providing shade and evaporative cooling, which can reduce the air temperature around your home. Air temperatures can be 3 to 6 degrees cooler in tree-shaded neighborhoods than in those with few or small trees.
- Trees that lose their leaves in the fall (i.e., deciduous) are most effective at reducing heating and cooling energy costs. When selectively placed around a house, they provide excellent protection from the summer sun, but permit winter sunlight to reach and warm your house.
- Grown on trellises, vines can shade windows or the entire side of a house.
- Evergreen trees planted on the northwest corner of your property can block winter winds and can save you up to 10% on your heating bill.
- Deflect warm summer winds by planting them on the south and west sides of your house.
- Windbreaks planted on three sides of the house can save up to 15% on your heating bill.
- Plant shade trees (deciduous trees) on the south and west sides of your house. In the winter, deciduous trees without their leaves let in the sun to warm your home. In summer, deciduous trees can block 70% to 80% of the sun's radiation.
- Shade trees do a better job of cooling a building than Venetian blinds, plastic coatings, or reflective coatings on windows.
- Shade your air conditioner to increase its efficiency by 10% during peak periods.
- Shrubs planted on all sides of the house help reduce wall and soil temperatures.
- Plant vines on a trellis a few feet from the wall to shade your walls and windows.
- Air conditioners in a fully shaded house need to work only one-half as much as those houses unprotected by shade.
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Pools and Spas
- If you have a pool or spa, set the heater thermostat to 78° or lower.
- Use a timer on your pool or spa to operate the filter pump.
- Check with your pool supply advisor for recommendations on how long to run your pool pump daily. Don't run it any longer than necessary.
- Use a cover or blanket on pools and spas when they are not in use.
- Run your pool pump during off-peak hours. Summer peak hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
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